Missing Folsom hiker found injured but alive after 9 days lost in Sierra

Missing California hiker found alive after 9 days lost in Sierra Nevada.

A woman who was lost in the rugged Sierra Nevada for nine days while suffering from broken bones survived by using a water filter to drink from a creek, authorities said.

Members of the Fresno County sheriff’s search-and-rescue team found Harwood on Saturday morning in an area east of Courtwright Reservoir after she heard rescuers in the area and blew a whistle to get their attention, sheriff’s officials said in a statement. Harwood was airlifted to a hospital to treat an unspecified injury sustained on Aug. 20 when she got separated from a group of hikers near Horsehead Lake, about 100 miles northwest of Fresno. Harwood was wearing pants and had a jacket when she was rescued, Hotchkiss said – clothing that offered little warmth as nightly temperatures dropped to the low 30s. “She was conscious – she was talking – she’s very, very grateful that she was found,” Mims said. “She was grateful to all of the people that helped look for her.” The California Offices of Emergency Services, the California National Guard, Kern, Tulare, San Luis Obispo, Marin, Contra Costa, Monterey and San Mateo counties, Sequoia Kings National Park, Yosemite National Park, the CHP and the California Rescue Dog Association all helped, Mims said. “We cannot get air support in to bring everybody out.